Many music producers and video editors today use short music loops as the basis for their productions. Music loops can be of single instruments such as a piano at a specific tempo and in a specific key are often cut in 4 to 16 measure repeatable phrases. They can also be loops of multiple instruments such as a rock band or orchestra. Often loops are in 4 to 16 measure repeatable phrases. The tips below will guide you in creating loops that you can use in your own productions or that you can sell to other media artists as downloadable online products.

1. First, you will want to decide on the type of loop you'd like to create before recording it into your digital audio workstation. You will either want to create a melody loop such as a piano line, or a backing loop such as a guitar strum.

2. Secondly you will need to record a performance that can then be cut into loops. Either use a microphone to capture a studio performance such as a guitar riff or use a software instrument to capture the playing in MIDI.

3. Thirdly, you may have to use eq to get rid of any offending frequencies that ruin the beauty of the loop you're creating. An awesome flute phrase, for example, could be ruined by a terrible sounding air conditioner hum. However, if you use eq to get rid of the low frequencies you can keep the flute minus the noise.

4. Fourth, apply whatever eq or reverb you are going to use and line up the loop three times to burn your first rough sample. Then, take this rough sample and bounce down only the middle loop which preserves the reverb from start to finish and results in a perfectly seamless loop.

5. Bounce down a finished stereo loop at a 48k sample rate at 24 bits. 48k is highly valued as its ready for use in video editing and 24bit will ensure a high quality thus making the loop more attractive to potential licensees.

The above steps provide a simple but effective outline on the process of creating high quality and sell-able loops from your audio samples for distribution in professional loop libraries.